


A Galaxy of Soft Grey

by manonrose284



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Canon Divergence, F/M, Force-Sensitive Leia Organa, Original planet, Parents Han and Leia, Pre-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Young Ben Solo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-06-17
Packaged: 2020-05-13 06:56:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19246114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/manonrose284/pseuds/manonrose284
Summary: What if:- when Luke disappeared, instead of being on Ahch-to doing nothing but hiding (like in the movies), he was on a hunt for knowledge that could unify Light and Dark wielders of the force forever- Leia learned to hone her sensitivity to the force- Ben was loved by his parents and asked to train with Luke with the secret hopes of finding a way to tame the growing darkness within him





	A Galaxy of Soft Grey

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing anything Star Wars related, so let me know what'cha think :)
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

 

 

The trek had been one of great length, yet it was far from over. Clung to the side of a forgotten mountain, becoming one with the wisps of humid night air, the Chosen One’s son continued his accent; slowing periodically against the rough surface of this flat sheet of risen earth, so high above the nameless planet’s surface that the strange silver-leafed tree tops were indistinguishable. 

Only through his training was he able to appreciate the chill of jagged rock beneath his tender fingers each time they found a new hold. Only through his connection with nature could he bare to continue the uncharted path up the face of this sacred mountain. 

He wanted to stop, of course— it would be so easy to give up, to breathe a little easier with each foot of decent in this too thin air; so simple to just ignore the unexplainable sense that had led him from one side of the galaxy to the other and onto this strange planet. When he had left after the battle on Endor, he’d told no one. Just… disappeared. And he could do that now; the strange tug that continued to urge him higher was known only to him meaning he would be letting no one down if he did not see it through.

Seriously considering it, he looked up, to see the cliffs ledge jutting out only a few body lengths away. The tufts of grass were visible against the star studded darkness above, and after a moment of silence to feel that tug from within the fabric of his soul, he took a deep breath.

With aching muscles and shallow breaths, he continued. Praying— to his masters, to the stars, to anyone and anything on this strangely uninhabited planet— that what he sought was truly here.  

When at last the stone turned to soft dirt then to lush grass, a sensation reached out to him with enough potency to give him pause.

The calming guidance of the Force was there still, willing him across the barren mountain peak, but this new feeling was that of darkness… and yet not. The sensation chilled the blood in his veins because he realized exactly what this was. 

Towering above him at the center of this foreign mountain peak, was an enormous tree. Not silver leafed like the ones at the planet's surface, for it held no foliage.

And it was while facing this tree, allowing that  to wash over him, that Luke understood.

The complex darkness he felt was familiar, because it was enveloped…  with light. It was a magnification of the strange feeling Luke would get whenever he was in the same space as one person.

 

Palpatine.

 

And the tree before him— barren of leaves yet engraved with golden swirls and bearing a slender entrance— it was ripe with echoes of Palpatine’s presence. 

Stepping towards the mouth, Luke realized why the information the Resistance sought had been so hard to find. Because Palpatine was so powerful that he’d had to store it all on a completely uninhabited planet— a planet on which Luke now stood.

The Force within him pulsed with great strength, as if to say he’d arrived, and with long strides, Luke headed for the entrance.

He was surprised to find the inside illuminated by thick moonlight that poured through those golden swirls he’d seen on the outside. As if they were mosaics in a sanctum, the light was cast in golden shadows across the tree’s core. 

Embedded within the ancient bark were lines of shelves filled with crumbling record books. Opening one, the leather invitingly lax in his palms as the pages opened, Luke’s eyes went wide.

He replaced it for another from the shelf above, then another and one more. Because what he held were journals, hundreds of them, all in Palpatine's handwriting. And that was only on one of the four smooth wall-like structures within the massive tree’s interior. 

Turning to the next wall and lifting a piece of text, Luke felt his brows scrunch in confusion. With disbelief, he turned to the next wall and selected another. He lowered it from his face, letting the brittle ink sink in.

This tree was indeed Palpatine’s, but the books were not. One wall dedicated to his own personal notes, but the others… they were his library, his  _research_ . Because each wall was filled with text— 

both Jedi and Sith.

Luke recognized a few from the Jedi Temple, ones that he’d only seen a few times before they were reported missing or stolen, then mysteriously forgotten all together. And with a glance across the tree, he realized the same could be said for Sith literature halls.

Suddenly feeling trapped by the overwhelming quantity of knowledge that suffocated the stale air and threatened to swallow him whole, Luke backed out into the grass covered peak. 

By the time he had calmed his racing mind, two suns began to crest the silver horizon. And with a deep breath, Luke made up his mind.

Turning his back to the glimmering light of dawn, Luke made his way back into the strange aura of a tree that somehow held enough knowledge to topple an entire universe within its core. With one last glance through the entrance, he selected a stack of worn leather bound pages, knelt onto the surprisingly soft ground, and began to read.

* * *

 

 

“Come on, even generals need beauty sleep,” Han whispered into Leia’s ear as more commanders approached her with pads of paper and glowing tablets for her to look over. When Leia shook her head dismissively and took a step to meet them, Han put a firm hand on her shoulder and lowered his voice. “That’s an order, princess.”

The seconds it took her to swirl around and pin him with a glare more powerful than the StarKiller Base was all the distraction Han needed to move in front of her and hold a hand out to the group of advancing commanders.

“General Organa has urgent matters to attend to. Revert any questions to one of the Resistance High Command members.”

His voice left no room for opposition, even dared a challenge to his unofficial yet irrefutable authority. Turning his back to them with a nod, Han led the General into Yavin 4’s outer edges. Both were silent as they traversed the brightly lit hallways that were bustling with activity.

As far as Resistance bases went, Han didn’t mind Yavin. It was infinitely better than the desolate unforgiving freezer box of Hoth— that he was sure of. 

As they passed control centers and battle planning rooms, Han’s mind drifted to memories of his time at Echo Base, which led him to that night when he’d almost frozen to death searching the snow-covered planes for an idiodic kid who was becoming very acquainted with Tauntaun guts. The memory, although it sent a shiver up his spine, also made something in his core tighten.

Han missed the kid— stupid and annoying as he was— and Han would do anything to have him back. Because in Han’s opinion, above all else, Leia’s brother was good for one thing. Hope. And everyone on this base, including Han himself and even Leia in the safety of their bedroom, were all running critically low on such a thing.

He was brought back to the present by the sound of a door closing behind him. Finally in the safety and quiet of their bedroom, tucked away in the farthest corner of the base, Leia released her grasp on the door handle and let out a long sigh.

“Thank you.”

Han knew she meant it, knew that— despite her unparalleled leadership skills and vital influence in the cause she believed so deeply in— the woman still needed rest. Still needed someone to have her back and remind her that she was human too, and that it was important to take care of herself.

“No problem. Hey,” he said while turning to her, “maybe I can sneak us some dessert rations from the-”

But Leia was already snoring against the mattress, sprawled across it in a very un-princess-like manor with half her body hanging off the side and loose strands of hair falling into her mouth.

The rare moment of peace warmed his soul and put an easy smile on his face. He dimmed the lights to a soft glow and placed a gentle kiss on her brow, taking a moment to brush the brown locks aside, before stepping into the hallway.

The smile was still on Han’s face as he went in search of dessert for his queen.

* * *

 

 

Leia awoke to an empty bedroom glowing with faint light, for she had been unwillingly drawn from the pits of unconsciousness by a persistent tugging in her gut. She tried to ignore it and begged for the darkness of sleep to claim her once more, but the pull did not relinquish.

With a groan of exhausted frustration, she hauled herself from the mess of sheets and stretched her back before straightening the clothes she’d accidentally fallen asleep in.

Leia stilled her body, listening intently to the faint pulling. When it dulled, she whispered into the room with exasperation, “Okay I’m up. Now what??”

And to her surprise, it answered. Not with a voice, but instead with a complex language of emotions and sensations. Following it’s directions, she soon found herself outside of the base, boots disappearing in the long grass at the jungle’s edge.

She was listening so intently to the silence of the night that when a voice from behind her reached out, she grabbed for her blaster and in the blink of an eye, had the muzzle aimed between the striking blue eyes of— 

“Luke?”

The name came out in a strangled gasp as the weapon fell from her now limp grasp. They embraced without another word and stayed like that, within each others arms, for what felt like hours and seconds all at once. But, finally, she pulled away to take in her lost brother.

She took it all in— the lines in his face as he’d matured into adulthood, the deepening of his skin from a significant amount of time beneath sun rays. But she couldn’t quiet the voice in her head, a repeated conversation she’d had in the privacy of her bedroom many times.

“Han misses you.”

Luke shook his head with a laugh Leia had begun to think she’d never hear again. “Yah, sure he does.”

But she took his hand, thick with scars and calluses, into her own to make him understand. 

“Yes, he does. As much as I have… even more at times.”

Luke’s smile fell and he looked away, running a hand through his long hair like he used to whenever he was ashamed. 

“Where have you been?” Leia asked, voicing the question that had weighed her down everyday since his disappearance. At that, Luke raised his head, lips twitching. There was a spark in his blue eyes so vibrant that it burned the exhaustion from her very bones.

“You’re gonna want to sit down for this.”

From his spot on the fallen tree trunk beside her, Luke told his sister everything. Speaking of knowledge he learned from within the gold embossed tree atop a barely scale able mountain on an unmarked planet, then of how he traveled throughout planets that were written in those ancient texts; how he immersed himself into the cultures of their inhabitants. How he lived amongst humans and strange creatures, Jedi and Sith alike, all undetected by the strength he now possessed from all he had learned.

When at last he finished, Leia looked at her brother, really  _looked_ . 

Gone was the boy she had last seen, gone was the scared yet self-destructively brave child who was overwhelmed by the vastness of life. The being that sat before her… this was a man completely whole. This was a master— not of Jedi or Sith— but of knowledge; a master of  _life_ .

For perhaps the first time in her life, Leia was speechless. 

Luke took her face lovingly between his mismatched palms, sensing the pride that radiated from Leia towards him. 

“You are stronger than you know, sister,” he said with a smile. “Please, let me show you.”

It was all she could do to nod and whisper, “Okay. But first you have to see Han.”

Luke’s smile fell a fraction before straightening with mock nonchalance, “Deal.”

Leia took his outstretched hand and shook it firmly before pulling her brother into her tight embrace once more. 

* * *

 

 

Han couldn’t believe his luck.

Not only had he been successful in sneaking two packets of Kanali Wafers out of the ration bin, but also in using his smugglers charm to trade with a young pilot who’d been unloading his supply ship. Meaning Han was now making his way back to the outer rim of Yavin 4 while balancing the Kanali Wafers plus two ripe Jogan fruits and a silver pouch that sloshed, full of Reythan berry juice.

The mischievous smile on his face broadened as he neared the door; Leia was going to flip out. She yelled at him whenever he did things like this— using his skills to benefit himself or worse, her, while depleting resources for others— but Han couldn’t help it. His swift hands couldn’t be stopped, and besides, he could always see the way she’d turn around after scolding him to hide a smile.

Leia’s voice was in his head as he made a bet with himself that he could predict exactly what she’d say before eating everything he’d brought. But after stepping through the threshold and closing the door behind him, Han was met with an empty room.

Fear crept up his spine and he circled in the room’s center, creating indentations in the modest yet soft rug beneath his boots. Just when he was about to throw everything down and race out to find her, the door opened behind him and a bomber jacket clad angel with a loaded thigh holster and halo of braided hair stepped through.

“Did you really sneak off after I left to go work more?” he whispered in a way that seemed to shout. “I swear Leia, one of these days you’re gonna fall asleep standing over battle pla-”

“Han!” the princess interjected, utterly exasperated but light with excitement. She wanted to tell him right then and there, but Luke had begged that under no circumstances could anyone think or know he was alive. So Leia took a deep breath, unloaded Han’s latest treasures onto the small wooden table in the corner, and took his hand into her own.

“Come with me,” she whispered with the hint of a smile. And when he opened his mouth, she held a finger to her lips, “Don’t say a word.”

With a raised eyebrow and breathy humph of defiance, Han allowed himself to be led by the slender yet deceptively strong hand that gripped his own.

As she led him further and further from one side of the base to the other— then pulled him towards the exit and into the long grass, not stopping as she moved for the jungle’s edge— Han was finding it increasingly difficult to obey her request of silence

_She’s gone mad_ , he thought to himself.  _ This is it… I knew all those years in politics would catch up eventually.  _ Walking through the jungle at midnight sure sounded like a symptom of hysteria to him.

Just as he was about to pull the plug and demand some kind of an explanation, Leia halted. Han took in the jungle around them; the roots beneath his boots, the soft buzzing of insects and the growling of distant beasts. He looked to the woman at his side, eyes full of questions, but she only nodded her head to the sheet of vines in front of them.

Not a heartbeat later, someone extended an arm through the vegetation, parting the vines as they stepped through and rose to their full height.

Moonlight cast beams on the cloaked figure and when that hood of strange fabrics was removed, Leia looked up at Han, eager to see his reaction.

But the legendary smuggler, who had done and seen so much, just stared. Completely frozen, as if the jungle floor had trapped his body, he stood. Mouth parted and eyes slightly widened, he said nothing. And neither did the man that Han had begun to mourn only weeks ago, finally believing him to have become one with death.

Leia reached for Han, but he shook her hand from his shoulder and took a step backward, shaking his head.

“No. _No_ ,” he rasped. “Go away— ”

Leia startled at the command and she could sense that Luke had stopped breathing. 

“I’m too tired to deal with ghosts,” he finished, running a hand through his hair as relief broke out into every line of exhaustion on his face. Something deep within his chest shattered and Han could suddenly breathe easier than he had since that awful day on Endor.

From beside him, Leia’s chiming laughter sounded and Han opened his arms wide. “What’re you still doing over there?”

Luke released the breath he’d been holding and raced over to them, colliding into Han’s firm embrace.

“Got a lot to tell you,” he mumbled against the taller man’s shoulder after a few moments.

“It can wait. This whole war can wait,” Han said firmly as he tightened his hold. “I missed you, kid.”

Luke winked at Leia who stood at Han’s back, face illuminated by moonlight and happiness she had never felt so strongly before.

“Yah, I know.”

* * *

 

 

For the next few weeks, in the late hours of the night, Luke and Leia trained. Deep within the forest in a spot where Luke had set up camp to avoid being spotted.

He taught her everything he knew. And as he did, as he became her teacher, Luke realized more and more that  _this_ was his destiny. As each day passed, he became increasingly convinced that he’d been sent to that tree and to all of those distant planets scattered throughout the universe not only to better himself, but to be the spark that ignited the flame that was his sister. 

And what a flame Leia was— learning everything in half the time it had taken him to. But then again, his teaching methods were a bit different from what he’d endured on Dagobah with Master Yoda.

He taught her how to tap into the power she already contained, taught her to feel for how she was but a conduit for the bond between all living things. And from the basis of his teachings, she thrived. 

Feeding the connection on her own, she strengthened her control and heightened her sensitivity through daily practice. And when, during one such session, she became one with the Balance before even Luke could, neither were too surprised. 

“You’re ready,” Luke said as he threw her a bundle of cloth.

She caught it with the Force and unwrapped the linen to reveal a Jedi robe of pearlescent white and warm brown. With a scrunched brow she regarded her brother. It was beautiful, but… 

“I’m not wearing that.”

He laughed, having been waiting for that exact reaction. His sister was nothing if not practical in everything she did, and billowing robes didn’t exactly fit the General’s lifestyle.

“Suck it up,” he said through a grin, “it’s tradition for where we’re going.”

Confusion still contorting her features, Luke motioned her to follow him to the X-Wing he’d hidden deeper in the jungle.

And with his back to her as he started onward, Luke threw his voice behind a shoulder.

“Careful, wouldn’t want your face’ta freeze like that!”

Leia returned to the jungles surrounding Yavin 4, exhausted, still shivering, and with a pocket that sagged from the crystal within.

Ilum had definitely lived up to her expectations. Its icebound caves had left her awestruck until Luke had told her she’d be traversing them alone until a kyber crystal  _chose_ her.

At the time, she’d thought it was a joke. A crystal choosing her? It seemed like a hoax, so much so that she’d waited for her brother to laugh and call the whole thing off. But he’d only suggested that she tie her Jedi linens a bit tighter so as to not freeze.

Upon landing back to their jungle home, Luke had given her a hug and kiss on the head before turning away from the Base in the distance, and heading into the depths of vegetation to the clearing that had become his temporary residence.

As Leia made the peaceful walk back, excited to see Han and tell him of her day, the crystal grew heavy in the pocket of her jacket. She had changed out of the Jedi robes as soon as she could, but the feeling of a crystal—  _her_ crystal— was unshakable.

The Balance had taught her much, and she couldn’t see how such a weapon could possibly be a representation of that wisdom. And Leia came to the agreement with herself during the trek that she would indeed make a lightsaber— out of curiosity sake more than anything— but she would not wield it.

After returning to the base, after a hot meal and a reunion with Han, Leia slept. And the next morning, she began to slowly reveal her honed abilities to the Rebellion.

Claiming her rightful place in the galaxy as the benevolent princess and confident general that protected all who stood beside her.

* * *

 

 

Luke left days before the news of Leia’s pregnancy was announced to even herself. Growing restless from being in one place while knowing there was so much to learn and see, it had been time for Luke to go.

He left, but didn’t disappear— not like he’d done on Endor— never again would he put those he loved through that kind of suffering again.

Luke was gone, yes; but he’d left behind a beacon. It had no note, but Leia got the message:  _only for emergencies_ .

The months turned into years, and though she longed to see her brother, Leia did not remove the beacon from its case until her boy had grown.

And grow he had— towering over Han, who had a few choice words about his seventeen year old son being taller and bearing little resemblance to him. Han would often joke, whispering into Leia’s ear late at night, “You sure an ewok isn’t his father?”

Everytime, she’d chime out in laughter before shaking her head, to which he’d mumble without fail, “Sure has the hair of one.”

Leia smiled, lost in thought as the comm turned in her palm, hovering over her skin as the Force enveloped the device.

She and Han had taught their child everything— from force wielding and strengthening his natural affinity for the force, to piloting; from marksmanship, to baking the perfect Smuggler’s Delight; from political and military prowess, to understanding Shyriiwook fluently.

He was a beloved part of Yavin 4, had begun to climb the ranks through merit and skill alone, earning everything he had. With love and compassion, they had taught him all they knew. But it wasn’t enough.

Leia knew Ben was strong with the force, not in the way she herself was, but he possessed a uniqueness when calling on his abilities— the air around him seemed to pause in wonder— and it didn’t frighten her, but she wished to understand the strangeness, as did Ben who had recently begun to exercise massive restraint, only wielding the force when absolutely necessary— only to help the Base.

And with all of the knowledge Luke must have amassed in all the years they’d been apart, Leia knew what she needed to do.

Having already proposed and discussed the idea to both Han and Ben, Leia pressed the translucent orb embedded in the metal device. Holding her breath, she waited, staring intently at the contents of her hand.

As a General, she hoped the call would be received; but as a mother… opposite reactions began to surface. But, fate had chosen where she could not, because the orb suddenly cast a blaring green light onto her hand, illuminating her face and gleaming into her soul.

She set the locator within the roots of a nearby tree and made her way back to the Base. It was time to pack.

* * *

 

 

Beneath the tree where the locator had been stored, Han and Leia greeted a weathered yet beaming Luke. After Han made a few comments about the beard he’d just begun to grow, Luke nodded to the sky.

“You know, I’d thought about starting a sort of school, one where the next generation of Jedi could be trained. But after being out there…,” his voice trailed off and the way he gazed into nothing yet everything all at once made Leia wish she could have been with him all this time.

“...I realized there’s so much to learn still. So much that even I still don’t know.” He shook his head and glanced to the ground, “That’s why everything fell apart before. Too much confusion and division; not enough clarity for such a massive infrastructure.”

Under his breath, Han muttered in agreement and Leia took Luke’s hand into her own.

“Thank you for doing this, Luke. You know it means the world to us.”

“Not a problem. Besides, it’d be nice to have a traveling companion. You can only spend so much time talking to porgs and droids, ya know?”

Before Leia could ask what a Porg was, Ben strode into the pocket of jungle. And with hugs and kisses, Han and Leia sent them off. They watched until Ben— who carried her own robe and saber within his pack with obvious strides of pride—  disappeared into the macrame of vegetation.

Ben could feel the distance between them growing, and to quiet the voice in his head that already missed his family, Ben glanced to his left side where Luke’s robes floated on the jungle air in clouds of billowing fabric. 

“So…,” he said, trying to think of something to say. But all he could come up with was, “Am I your Padawan?”

Luke masked his amusement behind a raised brow. “Do you want to be a Padawan?”

Ben didn’t know what to say, was this a test? As far as he knew, being a Padawan wasn’t exactly a choice. So with a shrug of his shoulders, Ben said, “Yes…. ?”

At that, Luke laughed as he stepped over a particularly raised tree root.

“I am not testing you, Ben Solo. I would like to propose something; how about we be traveling companions and nothing more? No Padawans or apprentices or Masters, no subordinates or hierarchies. Are we not equal in our want for adventure and for knowledge?”

Ben stared at Luke, almost eating the jungle floor in doing so before motioning his agreement with flushed cheeks.

“All of that was the way of the past, and look how that turned out,” Luke huffed. “Let us forge true balance and purpose in this new galaxy.”

The x-wing was but a few feet away— the door to a future Ben could not see clearly— and he nodded firmly before climbing into the spacecraft and getting lost in the sound of its roaring engine.

* * *

 

 

Ben had been to many planets, but never before had he set foot on terrain like this.

The moment he stepped down after pulling himself from the x-wing, he’d sunk into a pit of fluorescent mud. Luke had laughed at his new companion’s face— how disgust and awe fought for control of his features— before throwing a sac to Ben.

“Welcome to Avelza. Don’t worry, this place only glows at night.”

The memory of Luke’s own first time on these strange and wondrous lands drifted back; how he’d made the same face, and how he’d soon after fallen face first into the beautiful muck that tasted of tar and ash. 

Becoming one with the present once more, he pointed at the steep hill that towered over them, for Luke had landed at its base on purpose. The first lesson he had for Ben was one taught only through witnessing it. The climb wouldn’t be the lesson, but the view above.

Luke had chosen this planet carefully as an introduction to Ben of what was to come. Because in all of his travels, this particular ball of rolling hills and fluorescent night held in its grasp a city; one where light and dark collided, where the line between such things faded and the two seemed to dance. Where the names Sith and Jedi were unknown; only compassion for one another, and a boiling hatred for nothing but the swamp rats that sometimes snuck through the city gates to nibble on the pastries of which Luke had become devoutly in love with.

If utopias could exist in such a war torn universe, this would be it. And as far as he knew, Luke was the only outsider who knew of its existence… now that Palpatine was nothing but ash.

Leading the way, Luke began the accent silently due to the amount of concentration that the unsteady footing demanded; a fact Ben was immensely grateful for. It was taking every ounce of his strength to keep the darkness at bay.

The more he resisted the power, he realized, the more it felt like he’d implode.

The headaches were one thing— he’d learned to distract himself from their constant thrum— but the energy thrumming through his veins that begged for release was becoming hard to ignore. He hoped Luke could help him learn to control it, but despite the unending discomfort, Ben couldn’t ask, not yet. Because Ben was afraid— more than he’d like to admit.

Afraid of how Luke might look at him, how he might react to the dark tendrils he held within. But Ben was tired, he’d been resisting it for weeks now, and he didn’t know how much longer he could fight.

So lost in his inner battle for control, Ben almost crashed into the Jedi Master’s back. He opened his mouth to apologize for the close call, but with his lips still parted, Ben froze.

Because they’d reached the hilltop without him even realizing it, and from up here where the scenery was sprawled in the distance… Ben had no words; none had yet to be invented capable of describing what he looked out upon. The only thing close enough, the only word that came close to containing all that was laid out before him, was  _paradox_ .

Even from the great distance spanning between him and the city, Ben could make out with great detail, the beauty… and the horror… of the skyline. 

Buildings with spires that touched the clouds were scattered amongst the glowing streets. Each spire was a twisted impossibility, a feat of gravity in each curve. And the material from which they were crafted sent chills across his pale skin. Obsidian black were the stones that encrusted the structures, yet there were randomly placed slits that swirled in mosaics, light from within the spires shooting out through the panes in glittering colors so vibrant that Ben had to squint.

The streets— though hard to make out through the mass amounts of people filling each— were translucent, and beneath had rivers of glowing liquid that matched the fluorescent mud caking Ben’s shoes. But as he looked more intently, he could just make out creatures swimming beneath the streets; and he was glad for the great distance that began to blur his vision, because what drifted freely beneath the clear roads seemed to be made of pure nightmares— elongated limbs that moved in ways that shouldn’t be possible for any being, and eyes that Ben was sure were crimson.

He turned to Luke with a million questions surfacing— Why had he brought him here? What was this place? How was everything so different and yet so cohesive? And why did the darkness within the fabric of his being seem to have quieted, seemingly content?— but the Jedi was busy over a makeshift fire, holding a pot of steaming broth over the flames.

The action calmed Ben somehow, and he had a feeling Luke knew too. So he quieted his mind and joined Luke on the other side of the circle, sitting atop his own pack after removing a cloth wrapped object.

“That’s your mother’s lightsaber,” Luke said without looking up from his pot. Ben had been absentmindedly turning the metal from one palm to the other. He stopped the motion, glancing through the sparks and smoke.

“She’s never used it,” Ben said.

And although it hadn’t been phrased as a question, Luke nodded his head. “Do you know why?”

Ben shook his head, raven hair casting a shadow over his features.

“Well,” Luke began as he stirred the broth, “when I took her to build that, she asked me why the symbol of the Jedi— who strove for peace and unity— was a physical weapon… rather than our intellect.”

Ben repositioned himself atop his sack, listening intently as the other man lifted his voice to a more feminine pitch.

“‘The Empire isn’t going to be destroyed by a buzzing glowstick. Only an impenetrable mind can wreak such havoc,’ she’d said to me.” Luke shook his head with the whisper of a smile gracing his lips, “And she was right… as always.”

They were silent as Luke ate his meal, as he extended the pot to Ben, and he ate as well. When the fire died out and the city lights dimmed slightly, Luke gestured the horizon before unwrapping his sleeping roll.

“Get some rest. Because tomorrow… we begin.”

 


End file.
